|
900 West Main Street |
 Elijah Nimrod Redfearn House Julian Redfearn House Dessie Redfearn Rivers House Edgar Taylor Redfearn House Amy Hendrix Redfearn House  Former Kitchen–Relocated and Remodeled  Barn at Redfearn House Site |
Amy Hendrix Redfearn: The Redfearn house pictured here has been owned by the Redfearn family since it was built by Elijah Nimrod Redfearn. The exact date of construction is not known. Elijah Nimrod Redfearn was born July 28, 1839 and died September 6, 1915. His wife was Athalinda A. Maloy Redfearn. The house was built for his son, Julian Redfearn. There are no records on file at the Chesterfield County Courthouse to identify an exact construction date. The early records relating to this property were destroyed. It has been passed down by family members that the house was built in the era of the Civil War and that the records were destroyed when General Sherman burned the courthouse. The house is probably more than one hundred thirty years old.
It was built from “heart pine” marked and cut from the property. The floor joists are hand-hewed single timbers, running the entire length and width of the house. The floor consists of boards from eight to ten inches wide. Under the house hand-cut shims were used to level the floor since the joists were hand-hewed and not always square. The interior walls were slatted and covered with plaster mixed with horsehair for support and strength.
The first bathroom was unique; the bathtub was formed with wooden boards and then lined with copper. Water was pumped into the tub from a well and a pitcher pump installed in the bathtub. The wooden boards have deteriorated, but the copper lining is still under the house.
The house had a kitchen and dining room attached to the back of the house with a passageway from the main house. The kitchen and dining rooms were finished on the inside by ceiling boards that are single pieces of wood with no joints. There is a butler’s pantry and turntable built into the wall between the rooms. Food was prepared in the kitchen and delivered into the dining area on the turntable. The kitchen and dining areas were separated from the main house to prevent kitchen fires damaging the main house. The attached dining area was for convenience. That part of the original home was later removed from the main house and relocated to the rear of the property. The passage was closed in, and a kitchen area was added. The former kitchen and dining area is now a six-room rental house. The original house had a wraparound porch so that afternoon breezes could be enjoyed while sitting on the porch. The porch still covers the entire front and right side of the house. The pitch of the roof was so
high that an upstairs was added to the original house. The upstairs addition allowed for two additional bedrooms, a bathroom, and a large hall. Another bedroom was added at the back of the house where the original passageway to the kitchen and dining area was located. The present house has a formal living room and dining room with the original twelve-foot ceilings. It has a large den, four bedrooms, and three complete bathrooms. A double carport has also been added.
The original house had “outbuildings” to the right of the house located on what is now Turner Road. There was a horse and buggy house that was later converted to a carport. There was also a wood and coal shed, a rock flower house, and a barn; the original barn is still on the property but has been moved to the back side of the property away from the road. There were two houses used by servants located on the lot behind the main house. This lot also served as a pasture for animals and was planted with mulberry trees; none of the trees remain today. The lot is vacant now except for the barn which stands as a reminder of earlier times. The two servant houses were moved to the back side of the property facing what is now Redfearn Avenue; both houses have since been destroyed. There was a large gazebo in the side yard that was trimmed with the same gingerbread trim as the main house, but the gazebo has been destroyed as well.
Since Elijah had no immediate family at his death, the house and property were willed to his nieces and nephews. Dessie Redfearn Rivers inherited this house, referred to as the Redfearn House, located at the corner of SC # 9 and Turner Road. She lived in the house for a number of years, but when her family moved away, the house was divided into apartments and rented. Many current residents of Chesterfield once lived in these apartments.
Edgar Taylor Redfearn, Sr. bought the house from Dessie Redfearn Rivers in 1947. The house was renovated and occupied by him and his family. His wife, Amy Hendrix Redfearn, continues to live in the Redfearn House today.
Elizabeth Ann Gaddy Rivers: Amy Hendrix Redfearn taught Home Economics at Cheraw High School for many years, and she and I rode together. She and Edgar, who owned Redfearn Feed and Seed downtown, had two children–Amy Lou Redfearn (now Moore) and Edgar T. "Brother" Redfearn, Jr. |
|
20th-Century Chesterfield SC Home Page|
Chesterfield District Chapter of SC Genealogical Society
|